A first party may create a mailpiece such as, for example, a greeting card, and then provide the mailpiece to a second party who sends the mailpiece to a third party. One scheme for three party mailing would require that the second party acquire the mailpiece and then add postage to the mailpiece prior to providing the mailpiece to a service provider for delivery to the third party. Various service providers (SP) such as, for example, the United States Postal Service (USPS™), Federal Express (FEDEX™), or United Parcel Service (UPS™), will deliver a mailpiece to a party for a fee. For example, a customer may purchase a greeting card and then add postage to the envelope prior to sending the greeting card to another person. Thus, the second party must determine an appropriate postage fee for the mailpiece and add the appropriate postage before providing the mailpiece to the SP for delivery.
In the alternative, the SP may agree to deliver the mailpiece to the third party and bill the third party for the postage on delivery. However, the third party may be unwilling to pay the fee, which reduces the probability that the mailpiece will be delivered. Additionally, requesting pay-on-delivery (POD) service may incur significantly higher service fees including, for example, first-class service fees and service charges for POD processing for the mailpiece.